Urgent! Problems Wiring a Decora combo switch.

After days of work installing a bathroom exhaust fan this was supposed to be
the "day" when I flipped the switch and smiled. Nothing of the sort. I am
trying to wire the light and fan off a common feed however I must be missing
something. Only the light works. I had it hooked up once where one switch
operated both the fan and light. When one turned off the other turned on?!
To complicate matters a bit there is a yellow wire in the mix that when
connected to the load side is part of the light wiring. There is a ground
fault outlet in the bathroom. I don't know if this is revalent or not. In
the box there are four feeds in conduit: 1. white and black, 2. white and
black, 3. white and yellow, 4. white, black and green( the exhaust fan
wiring). 1 and 2 black connect to the hot right side. Yellow wire from the
third feed connects to the load side of the switch. This powers the light.
When I connect the black fan wire to the other hot side screw and the white
wire to the other load side screw nothing happens. Please help so I can
sleep tonight. Thanks!!!

After days of work installing a bathroom exhaust fan this was supposed to be
the "day" when I flipped the switch and smiled. Nothing of the sort. I am
trying to wire the light and fan off a common feed however I must be missing
something. Only the light works. I had it hooked up once where one switch
operated both the fan and light. When one turned off the other turned on?!
To complicate matters a bit there is a yellow wire in the mix that when
connected to the load side is part of the light wiring. There is a ground
fault outlet in the bathroom. I don't know if this is revalent or not. In
the box there are four feeds in conduit: 1. white and black, 2. white and
black, 3. white and yellow, 4. white, black and green( the exhaust fan
wiring). 1 and 2 black connect to the hot right side. Yellow wire from the
third feed connects to the load side of the switch. This powers the light.
When I connect the black fan wire to the other hot side screw and the white
wire to the other load side screw nothing happens. Please help so I can
sleep tonight. Thanks!!!

After days of work installing a bathroom exhaust fan this was supposed to be
the "day" when I flipped the switch and smiled. Nothing of the sort. I am
trying to wire the light and fan off a common feed however I must be missing
something. Only the light works. I had it hooked up once where one switch
operated both the fan and light. When one turned off the other turned on?!
To complicate matters a bit there is a yellow wire in the mix that when
connected to the load side is part of the light wiring. There is a ground
fault outlet in the bathroom. I don't know if this is revalent or not. In
the box there are four feeds in conduit: 1. white and black, 2. white and
black, 3. white and yellow, 4. white, black and green( the exhaust fan
wiring). 1 and 2 black connect to the hot right side. Yellow wire from the
third feed connects to the load side of the switch. This powers the light.
When I connect the black fan wire to the other hot side screw and the white
wire to the other load side screw nothing happens. Please help so I can
sleep tonight. Thanks!!!

If you want to be able to turn the light and the fan on and off independently
of one another, you obviously need two switches. It sounds like you were
attempting to control two devices with one switch. Perhaps you could post a
little more detail about the type of switch you have? For example, is this
"combo switch" a switch-and-outlet combo, or two switches?

Whoa, cowboy, stop right there. Your white wire should *not* be connected to
the switch -- that's the neutral wire, and it should be connected to the other
white wires. STOP RIGHT NOW! You don't know enough about how wiring works to
be able to do this safely. Go to your local library, or a home center such as
Lowe's or Home Depot, and get yourself a book on residential electrical
wiring BEFORE you touch this again. Please.

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